The start of the fall season on network television used to be a bigger deal before cable's summer original fare became so juicy and good. We admit we still get a little excited when we read about original ideas heading our way on the big networks. The crop of new shows starting this fall seems like more of the same (sadly), but there are some that don't follow type and deserve recommendation.

• Pushing Daisies, ABC, Weds @ 7pm (starting October 3). Jim Dale (of Pete's Dragon and Harry Potter audiobook fame) narrates this show by the creator of Wonderfalls about a handsome piemaker who can bring back the dead . . . for a few minutes at least. It's something we haven't seen on television before, shot in bright technicolor. Barry Sonnenfeld directs the pilot (and serves as an exec-producer), and the show features Kristin Chenoweth and Swoosie Kurtz in the supporting cast. Basically, this show has us at hello.
• Aliens in America, CW, Monday @ 7:30pm (starting Oct. 1). A Muslim teen from Pakistan comes to live with a family in small-town Wisconsin, who are flummoxed upon first encounter with the young man. We have heard good buzz about this show which is obviously not your typical network comedy fare.
• K-Ville, FOX, Monday @ 8pm (starting tonight). Two cops, one black and one white, deal with race and crime in post-Katrina New Orleans. The subject seems a worthy enough reason to watch the show, and Anthony Anderson is getting good reviews as a cop who suffered through Katrina and stayed on.

• Chuck, NBC, Monday @ 7pm (starts Sept. 24). A computer geek becomes spy by accident. It stars that guy from Less Than Perfect and is exec-produced by The OC's McG.
• Dirty Sexy Money, ABC, Weds @ 9pm (starts Sept. 26). The title of the show may be tacky, but the show itself has been garnering good buzz. Peter Krause (Six Feet Under, Cybill) stars as a lawyer who comes to represent an extremely rich family, the Darlings, headed by Donald Sutherland.
• Private Practice, ABC, Weds @ 8pm (also starting Sept. 26). Kate Walsh was our favorite aspect of the current mess that is Grey's Anatomy. While we weren't blown away by the initial view we got of her spin-off, we are willing to give it another chance, especially since Audra MacDonald has joined the cast.
• Back to You, FOX, Weds @ 7pm (starting this Wednesday, Sept. 19). Starring Kelsey Grammer (who we love despite his politics) and Patricia Heaton (who we don't), this sitcom about dueling news anchors looks promising. How bad can it be with Fred Willard in the cast? Don't answer that.

• Bionic Woman, NBC, Weds @ 8pm (starting Sept. 26). Okay, originally we were excited about this resurrection of the '70s era show. Then we saw the wooden acting in the preview months ago. Since then, there have been cast changes (her teenage sister isn't deaf anymore and won't be played by that gal from Arrested Development), Isaiah Washington (and all his drama) has joined the cast, and one of the show-runners has already left the show. None of this seems to bode well, so we'll be staying away from this one.
• Cavemen, ABC, Tuesday @ 7pm (starts Oct. 2). A 30-minute sitcom based on the cavemen in Geico's advertising. Need we say more?
• Kid Nation, CBS, Weds @ 7pm (starts Sept. 19). Someone thought it was a great idea to put a group of kids in a "ghost town" in the middle of New Mexico and leave them to themselves. This show, which hasn't aired yet, is facing a legal battle with the state of New Mexico over child labor. Is all publicity good publicity? In this case, we don't think so.

[AAS: Diane Holloway's Fall Picks]
Pushing Daisies photo from ABC, Back to You photo from FOX